Tomatillo chile de arbol salsa! A staple in my house! What are the few salsa recipes that you find yourself preparing all of the time? Chile puya tomatillo, salsa de mesa, basic salsa verde and this one! There are always variations on any salsa recipe. Today’s version of tomatillo chile de arbol salsa has a few extra steps compared to mom’s original recipe.
Why Change Mom’s Recipe?
I still prepare the recipe the way I learned from my mom now and then. As a cook who is always eager to learn new techniques that can improve a recipe, I am willing to try it. I enjoy the flavor of roasted garlic in my salsa, mom never added garlic. She also mentioned that her mom, my abuelita, never added garlic either. She said the reason was that the salsa would spoil faster with added garlic. I have found simple solutions to help preserve the salsa a little longer even with garlic. The picture below is the original way I learned to prepare this salsa. All of the ingredients were boiled together. I would drain most of the water, transfer to the blender, add salt and blend! The variation I prepare is I add garlic and cilantro, then blend. You can serve it freshly blended and it should last 5-7 days refrigerated. Or you can cook the freshly blended salsa for ten minutes and then store it in glass jars once refrigerated. It will last up to 2 weeks refrigerated. Each version has different flavors. I enjoy both!
Do I have To Cook My Salsa After Blending??
No! It is not necessary, but it really depends on the cook! The reason I started cooking my salsa after blending it was to help preserve it a little longer. Cooking it also improves the texture of the salsa. Many of my followers would ask me why their tomatillo salsas would clump up after being refrigerated? Tomatillos contain a natural pectin. Cooking the salsa after blending it, cooks out the pectin. But cooking the salsa will also change the flavor somewhat. Fresh cilantro flavor is way different than cooked cilantro. The uncooked salsa because it contains fresh cilantro and garlic, will have a shorter life than the cooked version. That’s why I say it’s up to you! In our house, mom’s salsa would only last two days, so there was no need to cook it afterwards. Plus mom never added fresh garlic and rarely added cilantro unless she was preparing avocado salsa.
Need More Tomatillo Salsa Recipes?
There are many variations when it comes to preparing tomatillo salsa recipes! My best advice when approaching different recipes that include hot peppers is to taste the pepper for heat! Many times we add just one or two peppers not knowing that they are extremely spicy and then the salsa comes out too spicy to enjoy. Of course everyone is at different heat levels when it comes to tolerating chile peppers.
Tomatillo Chile de Arbol Salsa
Ingredients
- 8 Tomatillos
- 2 Chile serrano
- 1/4 White Onion
- 1/2 tsp Avocado oil
- 3 Cloves of Garlic
- 6 Dried Chile de Arbol
- Handful of Fresh Cilantro
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- After peeling and washing the tomatillos, transfer them to a pot and cover with water, To the pot also add the onion and serrano peppers without the stems. Bring up to a boil, reduce to a simmer and continue cooking for 7-10 minutes. Remove from heat.
- In a small skillet, add the dried chile de arbol and the peeled cloves of garlic. Heat to just below medium. Add 1 tsp of oil. After a few minutes the ingredients will begin to sizzle and become aromatic. Toss in the hot oil for 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatillos, serranos and onion to the blender. Add only the garlic at this time. Pour in 1/2 cup of the cooking water in. Add a big handful of freshly washed cilantro to the blender. Season to taste with salt. Blend on high until smooth. Now add the chile de arbol and pulse to blend. I like to see the red chile flakes in the salsa.
- Transfer the blended salsa to a sauce pan and heat to medium. When it comes up to a simmer, reduce heat slightly and continue cooking for 7-10 minutes. Cooking the salsa will cook out the natural pectin and will yield a smoother salsa when refrigerated.
Notes
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